Some time in the near future, university lecturer Caspar receives a gift from a former student called Liv: a memory stick containing a virtual narrative. Hooked up to a virtual reality bodysuit, he becomes immersed in the experience of their past sexual relationship. But this time it is her experience. What was for him an erotic interlude, resonant with the thrill of seduction, was very different for her—and when he has lived it, he will understand how.

Later…

A convicted paedophile recruited to Liv’s experiment in collective consciousness discovers a way to escape from his own desolation.

A synthetic boy, designed by Liv’s team to ‘love’ men who desire adolescents, begins to question the terms of his existence.

L, in transition to a state beyond gender, befriends Liv, in transition to a state beyond age.

Liv herself has finally transcended the corporeal—but there is still the problem of love.

An Uncertain Grace is a novel in five parts by one of Australia’s most inventive and provocative writers. Moving, thoughtful, sometimes playful, it is about who we are—our best and worst selves, our innermost selves—and who we might become.

I know him. I recognise him from the other world, the real world. It is me of course, this man. In the other world I see him smiling at me in the mirror, catch glimpses of him as I walk past shop windows, see him in photographs.

Me. Of course it is me.

And I am her. I am Liv. And this is my room and it is his room and he, I, put my hand up my, her, skirt. I push the cotton aside with his finger and it hurts.

My Thoughts

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me the chance to read this.

This story has 5 parts, all connected. In the first part I was very uncomfortable (TW: Rape), in the second I was just confused but then as I read parts 3-5 the story and points to it became clearer. This is a story that I am still processing and thinking about. It's very thought-provoking. It takes on gender, sexuality, body image, sex, aging, and a future with how technology might alter our relationships with ourselves.

The content of this book is sometimes uncomfortable, but for a good reason. It forces us readers to take a look at ourselves, to ask questions we probably don't want to but need to. It makes you think, confront your own demons, biases, feelings, and how you approach and deal with these subjects.

The severity of sexual crimes are not treated in a light-hearted away or condoned in any way. This novel manages to open your mind to difficult areas of discourse, think about futuristic ideas and promoting compassion for people different from ourselves.

It started off slow and confusing for me, but slowly my mind was opened and I began to really think on all the topics and discussions explored within. While I highly recommend this book, I also recommend taking it slow and taking the time to process it all. I think i'm going to need a re-read of this sometime in the future.